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Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies of The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity. of purges necessary to maintain the climate of more a symptom of Stalin’s anti-semitism and paranoia than a real conspiracy. The longest-running conspiracy theory is probably the one about the Jews wanting to take over the world. Such ideas have served as the justification for acts of random, irrational violence and led to the systematic persecution of the Inquisition. A book was published in the 1920s supposedly giving documentary proof of such a the Nazis to exterminate the entire Jewish population of Europe during the Second World The downright silly entertaining. Take the case of the humble light bulb. Who would believe that companies had suppress it from the market because it would mean their profits would be drastically affected. And what about the carburettor that can make a car run 300 miles on a single gallon of petrol but has been kept from consumers deliberately? Or the automobile company that tried to get control of trams in cities so that people would buy more cars instead of using pubic transport? unnamed organisation intent on world domination and that the numbers hide the mark of the devil… And the death of Diana? Well, apparently the driver wasn’t really drunk and there was a lot of carbon monoxide in his blood. A letter had been written by the Princess just before the accident rid of her, and the French authorities never carried out a post-mortem to find out the cause of her death. These isolated facts supposedly add up to a secret plot by intelligence agencies to prevent the destruction of the British monarchy. An awful warning Whatever you do, though, don’t let your life be dominated by conspiracy theories or you could end up like the former footballer and TV sports commentator who currently believes that theworld is going to be taken over by a secret brotherhood of reptiles, and has published various books giving details. His writings sell very well in some parts of the world, but there must be easier ways of being popular in Canada … After reading Exercise 1 in the text refer to 1. such events a. conspiracy theories b. powerful people operating behind the scenes c. tragedies such as the death of Princess Diana they a. conspiracy theories b. humans c. weak and fallible creatures 3. Some a. initiation rites b. elaborate rituals c. secret societies 4. Hundreds a. Jewish medical professionals b. people c. Soviet leaders 5. It a. the Communist Party b. The Doctors’ Plot c. a long line 6. This a. the fact that the book was exposed as a fraud b. documentary proof of such a world conspiracy c. a book 7. one a. a cartel b. a conspiracy theory c. a light bulb Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies of The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity. Exercise 2 The phrases in the first table below all use the passive because the people involved are not known or because what happened is more important than who did it. Match each of the phrases with a form of the passive in the second table below. We are being watched A book was published A letter had been written humans can be seen as …has been kept from don’t let your life be dominated medical professionals were accused of their profits would be drastically the world is going to be taken Form Phrase Future Imperative (negative) Present Continuous Modal present Present Perfect Past simple (x2) Past perfect Conditional More activities on this topic You’ll find links to all the following activities connected to the theme of conspiracies at: http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglis Word game : Conspiracy idioms puzzle . This jigsaw puzzle practises idioms and expressions related to conspiracies. Story: The Trial . This surreal novel by Franz Kafka is about a character named Joseph K., who awakens one morning and, for reasons that one never discovers, is arrested and subjected to the rigours of the judicial process for an unspecified crime. Trivia Everything you (n)ever wanted to know about conspiracies. There is also a conspiracies-related cartoon, a poll, and some carefully selected external links. Answers 1. c; 2. a; 3. c; 4. b; 5. b; 6. a; 7. c Form Phrase Future the world is going to be taken over Imperative (negative) don’t let your life be dominated Present Continuous we are being watched Modal present humans can be seen as Present Perfect …has been kept from Past simple (x2) medical professionals were accused of A book was published Past perfect A letter had been written Conditional their profits would be drastically affected Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies of The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity. The phrases in the first table below all use the because the people involved are not known or because what happened is more important than who did it. Match each of the phrases with a form of the passive in the second table below. We are being watched accused of their profits would be drastically the world is going to be taken Form Past simple (x2) Past perfect You’ll find links to all the following activities connected to the theme of conspiracies at: http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglisConspiracy idioms puzzle. This jigsaw puzzle practises idioms and expressions related to conspiracies. . This surreal novel by Franz Kafka is about a character named Joseph K., who e morning and, for reasons that one never discovers, is arrested and subjected to the rigours of the judicial process for an unspecified crime. Everything you (n)ever wanted to know about conspiracies. cies-related cartoon, a poll, and some carefully selected external links. Answers 1. c; 2. a; 3. c; 4. b; 5. b; 6. a; 7. c the world is going to be taken over Imperative (negative) don’t let your life be dominated Present Continuous we are being watched humans can be seen as …has been kept from Past simple (x2) medical professionals were accused of A book was published Past perfect their profits would be drastically affected Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies of The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity. of purges necessary to maintain the climate of more a symptom of Stalin’s anti-semitism and paranoia than a real conspiracy. The longest-running conspiracy theory is probably the one about the Jews wanting to take over the world. Such ideas have served as the justification for acts of random, irrational violence and led to the systematic persecution of the Inquisition. A book was published in the 1920s supposedly giving documentary proof of such a the Nazis to exterminate the entire Jewish population of Europe during the Second World The downright silly se of the humble light bulb. Who would believe that companies had suppress it from the market because it would mean their profits would be drastically affected. And what about the carburettor that can make a has been kept from consumers deliberately? Or the automobile company that tried to get control of trams in cities so that people would buy more cars instead of using public transport? And the death of Diana? Well, apparently the blood. A letter had been written by the Princess just before the accident rid of her, and the French authorities never carried out a post-mortem to find out the cause of her death. These isolated facts supposedly add up to a secret plot by intelligence agencies to prevent the destruction of the British monarchy. An awful warning end up like the former footballer and TV sports commentator who currently believes that theworld is going to be taken over by a secret brotherhood of reptiles, and has published various books giving details. His writings sell very well in some parts of the world, but there must be easier ways of being popular in Canada …After reading b. powerful people operating behind the scenes c. tragedies such as the death of Princess Diana c. weak and fallible creatures a. initiation rites b. elaborate rituals c. secret societies c. a long line at the book was exposed as a fraud b. documentary proof of such a world conspiracy c. a book c. a light bulb Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies of The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity. Download the LearnEnglish Themes podcast. You’ll find more information on this page: http://www.britishcouncil.org/l This support pack contains the following materials: the article that you can listen to in the podcast a comprehension activity based on the article a grammar activity based on the article links to other activities on the LearnEnglish website on this theme (conspiracies). Are you convinced that your government is in UFOs? Do you think that President Kennedy was the victim of more than one assassin? Do you get the feeling that we are being watched? Then you are probably a believer in conspiracy theories. The recent success of the ‘Da Vinci Code’ the Catholic Church has suppressed the truth about the death of Jesus shows how such theories can take hold of the popular Everyone loves a conspiracy conspiracy theory assumes that tragedies such as the death of Princess Diana in Paris were not just accidents but were carefully planned and carried out by a group of powerful people operating behind the scenes for various sinister motives. The cock-up theory of history says that are probably caused by a The conspiracy theory is, naturally, much more apers of their own destiny, rather than the weak and fallible creatures they are. And either one way or the other, conspiracy theories are limited only by the human imagination. ages. The Gunpowder Plot in England in 1605 to get rid of the King of plot to kill Hitler in 1944, were taken seriously enough at the time - the conspirators confessed after being tortured and they were then executed. Secret societies are a matter of historical record ion rites, hierarchy, secret signs and elaborate rituals. Brotherhood of the Rosicrucians, were mystical or religious in nature. Others are more social or political in character like the Freemasons, whose members have included writers, generals, politicians and even kings. They formed the opposition to the Catholic Church in Southern Europe, for example, and supported the pursuit of rational thought, scientific endeavour and liberal democracy. ve discovered a plot and brought some people to trial doesn’t mean that a conspiracy really existed. In the dying days of Stalin’s regime, a group of Jewishmedical professionals were accused of conspiring to poison Soviet leaders and overthrow the state. were arrested and executed. The Doctors’ Plot of 1953 was just one in a long line Podcasts – Themes – Conspiracies of The United Kingdom’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity. Download the LearnEnglish Themes podcast. You’ll find more information on this page: http://www.britishcouncil.org/l This support pack contains the following materials: the article that you can listen to in the podcast a comprehension activity based on the article a grammar activity based on the article links to other activities on the LearnEnglish website on this theme (conspiracies). Are you convinced that your government is in Kennedy was the victim of more than one assassin? Do you get the feeling that we are being watched? Then you are probably a believer in conspiracy theories. success of the ‘Da Vinci Code’ the truth about the death of Jesus shows how such theories can take hold of the popular Everyone loves a conspiracy They say that there are two basic explanations heory assumes that tragedies such as the death of Princess Diana in Paris were not just accidents but were carefully planned and carried out by a group of powerful people operating behind the scenes for various sinister motives. The cock-up theory of history says that are probably caused by a The conspiracy theory is, naturally, much more powerful shapers of their own destiny, rather than the weak and fallible creatures they are. And either one way or the other, conspiracy theories are limited only by the human imagination. conspiracies through the ages. The Plot in England in 1605 to get rid of the King of plot to kill Hitler in 1944, were taken seriously enough at the time - the conspirators confessed after being tortured and they were then executed. Secret societies are a matter of historical record on rites, hierarchy, secret signs and elaborate rituals. Brotherhood of the Rosicrucians, were mystical or religious in nature. Others are more social or political in character like the Freemasons, whose members have included writers, generals, politicians and even kings. They formed the opposition to the Catholic Church in Southern Europe, for example, and supported the pursuit of rational thought, scientific endeavour and liberal democracy. discovered a plot and brought some people to trial doesn’t mean that a conspiracy really existed. In the dying days of Stalin’s regime, a group of Jewishmedical professionals were accused of conspiring to poison Soviet leaders and overthrow the state. were arrested and executed. The Doctors’ Plot of 1953 was just one in a long line